The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus used as an electrophotographic copying machine.
The image forming apparatus of this type has been recently set up in convenience stores etc. Customers can use the image forming apparatus if they pay a fee.
When a copy is made, a user sets a document on a document setting table of the image forming apparatus and presses a copy button. By this operation, an image of the document set on the document setting table is transferred on a paper sheet and the paper sheet is discharged from the image forming apparatus.
In the convenience store, customers make copies without paying attention to orientation and size of a document and a paper sheet.
More specifically, even if an A4-size document is set on the document setting table, a copy is improperly made by setting a B5-size sheet or an A3-size sheet.
In particular, when a document of an indefinite-size is set on the document setting table, it is difficult to set a proper size of paper sheet and to align the document with the table. In this case, whether or not the copy is properly made, is discovered for the first time after the copy is actually made.
It follows that a number of wrong-copies are produced. As a result, extra time and trouble are required and the cost unnecessarily increases.
An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus and an image forming method capable of easily making a suitable copy by automatically determining whether the orientation of the document set on a document setting portion is the same as an image recipient body of a predetermined size, and displaying a message of an operation procedure which should be performed by a user, based on how the size and orientation of the document compare to the size and orientation of the recipient body of a predetermined size.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned object is realized by an image forming apparatus comprising a document setting portion, a size determination means, to select the size of the recipient body from a plurality of sizes; and detecting means, to detect the size and orientation of the document. According to this embodiment, the image forming apparatus of the present invention further comprises, a determination means, to determine if the size and orientation of the document are the same as the size and orientation of the recipient body, display means, to display a message to the user of what operation procedure should be performed based on the comparison of the document to the recipient body, and operation means, to carry out the operation procedure selected from the display message by the user.
According to a preferred embodiment, an image forming apparatus comprises a document setting portion, a size determination means, to select the size of the recipient body; and detecting means, to detect the size and orientation of the document. According to this embodiment, the image forming apparatus of the present invention further comprises, a determination means, to determine if the size and orientation of the document are the same as the size and orientation of the recipient body, a first display means to display to display a message to the user of what operation procedure should be performed based on the comparison of the documents to the recipient body, a second display means to display an image of the size and orientation of the document and the size and orientation of the recipeint body, and operation means to carry out the operation procedure selected from the display message by the user.
According to another embodiment of this invention, the aforementioned object is realized by a method of of forming an image comprising setting a document, selecting the size of the image receipt body from a plurality of sizes, detecting the orientation and size of the document, determining whether the size and orientation of the document is the same as the size and orientation of the receipt body, displaying a message of an operating procedure which should be performed by a user, and operating the operating procedure as displayed in the display step.